Lavrov: Turkey should bring Afrin under control of Damascus

Moscow expects Turkey to bring the strategic northern Syrian town of Afrin under the control of the Syrian government, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

"Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has never said that Turkey wants to occupy Afrin," Lavrov said, adding that Russia now expects Turkey to bring the area under Syrian government control.

Turkey entered Afrin in March to drive out the Kurdish militia, known as the YPG, which forms the backbone of the Syrian Democratic Forces.